Her mother gave birth to her on the island of Ortygia, then, almost immediately after her birth, she helped her mother to cross the straits over to Delos, where she then delivered Apollo.
This was the beginning of her role as guardian of young children and patron of women in childbirth. Being a goddess of contradictions, she was the protectors of women in labor, but it was said that the arrows of Artemis brought them sudden death while giving birth. As was her brother, Apollo, Artemis was a divinity of healing, but also brought and spread diseases such as leprosy, rabies and even gout. Artemis with her twin brother, Apollo, put to death the children of Niobe. The reason being that Niobe, a mere mortal, had boasted to Leto, the mother of the divine twins, that she had bore more children, which must make her superior to Leto.
Apollo being outraged at such an insult on his mother, informed Artemis. The twin gods hunted them down and shot them with their bows and arrows; Apollo killed the male children and Artemis the girls.
Artemis was worshiped in most Greek cities but only as a secondary deity. However, to the Greeks in Asia Minor modern day Turkey she was a prominent deity. In Ephesus, a principal city of Asia Minor, a great temple was built in her honor, which became one of the "Seven Wonders of the Ancient World". But at Ephesus she was worshiped mainly as a fertility goddess, and was identified with Cybele the mother goddess of eastern lands.
The cult statues of the Ephesian Artemis differ greatly from those of mainland Greece, whereas she is depicted as a huntress with her bow and arrows.
Those found at Ephesus show her in the eastern style, standing erect with numerous nodes on her chest. There have been many theories as to what they represent. Some say they are breasts, others that they are bulls testes which were sacrificed to her. So the true interpretation remains uncertain, we can say that each represents fertility.
She carried to her own temple on her head as the protector of her own temple. But on the very night Alexander the Great was born in in Macedonia, she could not keep her own temple in Ephesus. Because she was helping the birth of the important person. Later Ephesians understood it. When they told this Alexander the Great after his conquest of Anatolia, he gave the city special privileges.
Being associated with chastity, Artemis at an early age asked her father Zeus to grant her eternal virginity. Also, all her companions were virgins. Artemis was very protective of her purity, and gave grave punishment to any man who attempted to dishonor her in any form. The archaeological site is one of the most import and largest excavations in all of the Mediterranean. The small Delos Museum has one of the most important collections of ancient Greek sculpture and objects relating to the life in Hellenistic period.
The sun is unrelenting on Delos and there is no shade. Bring a hat or umbrella for a bit of shade and bring water as there is only a small bar near the museum. This article contains affiliate links.
When you book on Viator through our affiliate sites, we earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Loved this post? We love when you share our content! Jennifer Dombrowski is an independent travel publisher and an American expat who has lived in Bordeaux, France since She previously lived in Northern Italy in a small village near Venice for seven years where she fell in love with wine and wine tourism. She is an award-winning travel writer. Beautiful photos!
I definitely need to brush up on my mythology. Having just been in Greece makes me want to get out the Iliad and Odyssey again!
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